Fate of Richmond Stop & Shop Still Uncertain
By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA
June 3rd 2024
RICHMOND – The announcement last week that the parent company of Stop & Shop supermarkets will close some stores has generated considerable concern in Richmond, where the Stop & Shop is the only large supermarket in town.
Headquartered in the city of Zaandam, the Netherlands, Stop & Shop’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize, is a global food retail giant, with more than 7,700 stores in Greece, Serbia, Romania, the Czech Republic Belgium the Netherlands and the Eastern United States. The company, which also owns Hannaford supermarkets, employs more than 400,000 people.
In a presentation to investors on May 23, J.J. Fleeman, the Chief Executive of Ahold Delhaize in the United States, announced that the company would be closing “underperforming” stores and focus on markets where the stores have been successful.
There are 395 Stop & Shop stores in the eastern United States, and the Richmond Stop & Shop, on Stilson Road, is one of 26 stores in Rhode Island.
The Richmond store has been the target of criticism over the years. Residents have accused the company, which owns the Stop & Shop Plaza, of keeping other food retailers out of the town so there wouldn’t be competition. And lately, shoppers have also complained of bare shelves in the stores.
The BRVCA attempted to determine the status of the Richmond store, but company spokeswoman Caroline Medeiros said it was too early to announce which stores were slated to close.
“Stop & Shop continues to hold a strong market share position in the Northeast with our portfolio of nearly 400 stores,” she stated in an email. “We've completed more than 190 remodels to date, which continue to perform well, and we're committed to continuing to invest in our stores - as well in our prices - to deliver a great in-store experience and great values for our customers. Stop & Shop will make some difficult decisions to close select underperforming store locations to help ensure the long-term health and future growth for our business. It is too early in the process to share any additional information regarding potential store closures.”
Troubled Stores in Other States
It seems that underperforming stores can be found throughout the East. In the March 3, 2024 issue of the supermarket trade blog, “The Market Report,” the publication found that Stop & Shop stores in New York and New Jersey were, as customers had complained on social media, low on inventory, and appeared to be in trouble.
“One thing that’s obvious is that Stop & Shop is struggling,” the report reads. “The vast majority of these stores appear to be very low-volume, and/or with minimal investments. Even the stores that have been remodeled recently feel out of date because the remodels are so minimal.”
The report also notes that there seemed to be fewer employees in the stores.
“Across the board, stocking and staffing seem to be kept at a bare minimum – even more extreme than they have previously. Most of the stores I visited had serious problems with empty shelves, and almost all of the stores felt too big even though some of them were moderately sized,” the report states.
Ahold Delhaize has pledged to invest in improvements to those stores that remain open, however, after publishing the first report, Market Report visited additional Stop & Shop stores and found that things had gotten even worse.
The reporter concludes, in the March 16 report, that many stores seem destined to close.
“It’s frustrating not knowing, but I don’t have any magical inside information here,” he writes. “I wish I could tell what was going on, but my best guess this moment, if I were forced? Stop & Shop as we know it is counting down its last days.”